Best mATX C2D Mobo?

[[Dr. V]]

http://forums.hardwarelogic.com/f44/...take-4617.html

there is my thread about the best cases for me to buy; but all mid tower!

ive really been looking at this thermaltake lanbox

Thermaltake Black LANBOX Micro-ATX Case

and really an intrigued by it!

i will definitely to buy it if i can find a motherboard that will fit it thats sufficient! i wanted 680i, but im not sure if its worth risking 680i to have that case...

just need to know whats the best motherboard that will fit in that case, and ultimately, is it worth it and can i have a high end system with that?


vs. a 680i mobo is it a HUGE difference? i mean do the 680i mobos bring HUGE increases in performance or simply more for overclocking purposes?

[screwballl]

I am going for the GA-965P-DS3 which it says is an ATX board but compared to other builds I have done, it looks more like a mATX.. not sure as I do not have one here to look at myself

[[Dr. V]]

that is a good mobo and ive heard some good overvlocking results from it...

im wondering myself if that would fit in the lanbox...

[Mithosphere]

nope it wont, its ATX sized, the lanbox only fits mATX, which have 4 expansion card slots

[Quakindude]

Originally Posted by ST!X

that is a good mobo and ive heard some good overvlocking results from it...

im wondering myself if that would fit in the lanbox...

A mATX mobo is generally about 9.6" x 8.6" - 9.2", almost a square.

Typical ATX motherboards are 12.0" x 8.3" - 9.6", more of a rectangle.

The mATX formfactor mobo's almost always have a 9.6" length while ATX mobo's are almost always 12.0" in length. I wouldn't anticipate being able to use any ATX mobo in a mATX case without some significant modding. Not only are the physical diminsions significantly different between the two, the mounting holes for the screws are in totally different locations.

[[Dr. V]]

mounting holes i wouldnt really care about. 1 foot long i dont think would be comfortable in that lanbox!

[One4yu2c]

Originally Posted by ST!X

just need to know whats the best motherboard that will fit in that case, and ultimately, is it worth it and can i have a high end system with that?

It all depends on what you want to do with your system. There aren't any 680i equivalent motherboards in mATX form, and you're not going to have room for extra long videocards such as the 8800GTX unless you remove the HDD cage and utilize the single side mounted 3.5" bay.

Limitations aside, you can certainly build a high end system around a mATX foundation, and while an 8800GTX won't fit without some fiddling, the 8800GTS will. You'll want to research your mobo options thoroughly, but a couple that catch my eye from a quick Newegg glance include the Asus P5B-VM and Gigabyte GA-965GM-S2.

[gvblake22]

After building a couple mATX systems for myself (although on the s939 and AM2 platforms), what you really want to research is the BIOS for the mATX boards. I've found that on occasions, you can find a board like the DFI RS482 Infinity that actually has a fully featured BIOS like you would find on an enthusiast level ATX motherboard. However, many mATX boards have much more limited BIOS options, so I highly suggest that when you find a board you think you like, try and find some reviews and check out what your BIOS options are like. If you cannot find any reviews (which is very likely for a mATX board), then check on the manufacturer's website for a download of the manual, which should list the BIOS options in it.

I only mention all this because I am a computer enthusiast and (by nature) like to be able to tweak my system a little here and there to make sure everything is running the way I want. Particularly when it comes to RAM timings. For example, my Gigabyte GA-M61PM-S2 doesn't have BIOS options for most of the RAM timings so it is left up to the BIOS to auto-detect whatever it things it should run my RAM at. Well, it turns out that the BIOS thinks my 4-4-4-10 DDR2-800 memory run at 5-5-5-12. Only by enabling hidden BIOS options (with Alt+F1 or something like that) was I able to change the CAS latency back down to 4, but I still couldn't change anything else. It's probably not something that most people using a mATX board would ever be concerned with. But someone like me might be a little disappointed with the lack of BIOS options.

So I guess all my rambling is just to get you to remember to dig a little deeper into your prospective purchase and make sure it will suit your needs

[[Dr. V]]

all very helpful guys thanks!

i think i might resort to the NCIX Apollo (black) case with a ECS 680i mobo...

unless i bring it to myself to not care about 680i i think i might have to go with the above configuration...

is it really a huge performance jump ACROSS the board (no pun intended) or is it simply the overclocking???

[Quakindude]

The 680i mobo's are maturing nicely now. On first release, they were difficult animals to work with and I went through no small amount of pain getting mine to stay stable at FSB's over 1475. Now that the Bios has matured enough to be rather stable, I have no problem recommending it to anyone as I've run stable overclocks to 1600. I suggest you go with DDR2-800 ram. If you plan to overclock your CPU, DDR2-800 will give you all the overclocking head room you will need. Keeping this in mind:

QDR 1066 =DDR2 533
QDR 1333 =DDR2 667
QDR 1500 =DDR2 750
QDR 1600 =DDR2 800
QDR 1800 =DDR2 900
QDR 2333 =DDR2 1066

Means that once you get your CPU to a 1600FSB with the 680i, you will be running at a 1:1 memory ratio. The E6600 stock has a 1066 Bus and a 9 multiplier for 2.4Ghz. If I overclock to a 1600 Bus, the CPU is running at 3.6Ghz and on air, I can't run my E6600 at 1600FSB loaded as it gets too hot.

I actually have to run my DDR2-800 Ram unlinked because it simply will not boot at speeds less than 1475. It's underclocked by too much. So what I do is squeeze every last bit of timings out of my ram. That DDR2-800 is rated at 4-4-4-12 2T and I have it unlinked running at 4-3-4-10 2T. With my CPU overclocked to 3.375Ghz, I'm running a 6:7 memory ratio.

So what's all of this mean? The 680i's are on par with any Intel chipset now. The Raid issues have pretty much been solved, but an Intel chipset is faster in data transfers if you plan on running a RAID setup. I don't. No reason for one IMHO. Overall, the Intel chipsets are more stable. That's not to say the 680i's aren't stable, but the Intel's are more stable in extreme overclocking scenarios.

I wanted a 680i for the SLI capabilities along with an additional x8 PCI-e slot in case physics processors ever takes off. With how well the 8800 series of video cards are doing, I just don't see myself running SLI anytime soon. When DX10 games come out, that may change.

My overall recommendation? If ultimate stability is important to you and you just don't see yourself using SLI, I'd go with the DQ6 or DS3 mobo. If you want to keep SLI as an option for the future, the 680i chipset will please you just as well as the Intel chipsets.